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Kathmandu Wednesday February 28, 2001 Falgun 17, 2057.
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CAAN set to increase taxes
Half year tax collection Rs 500m
Post Report
KATHMANDU, Feb 27 - Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) collected Rs 500
million in taxes within first six months of the current fiscal year. The whopping
collection, as it might seem, that too only two years after its establishment, may project
an image of being sustainable and self-reliant. But, CAAN, is yet to be achieved it.
Lately, to facilitate in making CAAN more endurable, officials are working to
increase the taxes levied upon the passengers at the Tribhuvan International Airport. As
per the information received, the preliminary homework has been completed and the final
decision is likely to come soon.
Each passenger presently pays Rs 600 as airport tax. The maximum that the
government can levy is Rs 1000, according to International Civil Aviation Organization
(ICAO) rules.
According to officials at CAAN, the Authority can never reach the desired
sustainability: not even if tax collection continues at the current rate throughout the
year, unless taxes are hiked. Says Basudev Shrestha, chief of the Finance Department,
"The CAAN will take another five years to be self-reliant. The present surge in tax
collection is, however, a positive sign towards its sustenance."
CAAN last year had incurred losses of Rs 100 million. While its collection
stood at Rs 900 million, the expenses then had been 1 billion. The government had to
inject additional Rs 160 million. Also, the government, at the time of establishing CAAN
after scrapping the Aviation Department, had invested Rs 1 billion.
Officials are optimistic that despite last year’s losses, CAAN would not
have to borrow from the government this year. However, they added that CAAN is still not
in a position to repay the amount that it owes to the government.
Despite the autonomy granted to CAAN, incongruous policies of the government,
in addition to laxity in announcing CAAN regulations, has curtailed the freedom with which
CAAN can operate. Political interventions in CAAN’s normal operations have rendered
efforts to make the Authority sustainable largely redundant, lament officials.
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